Deadline Is Raining in the Status Window - Chapter 159

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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“I’ll clear a path then.”
But he recovered quickly. Well done, Gerth.
While the Department Head Professor leaped toward Sky Island using gravity manipulation, Gerth walked straight through the minefield in a reckless line, detonating them indiscriminately. A normal human would become ground meat treading that path, but Gerth was so remarkably durable that his clothes merely collected soot. He even dug out some mines with his bare hands and triggered them.
“Your boyfriend’s physicality is insane.”
“I knew he was strong, but seeing it firsthand is astounding.”
“W-well, it’s better than facing the Machine King, so, yes, this works out.”
Right. If the quest had been to eliminate the Serpent King instead of destroying Sky Island, what would I have done? The moment I carelessly uttered those words, Reina Letem grabbed my mouth with a serious expression.
“Hey, you idiot! That’s a self-destruct button! Don’t you know that’s a self-destruct button!?”
“I-I just now, Evan was, s-somewhat reckless.”
Right, thinking about it, my mistake was crystal clear. If I said something like that, the next quest window would definitely display “Eliminate the Serpent King”—that’s the cliché.
But fortunately, such a nightmarish development didn’t unfold. We waited in deathly silence for the status window notification, and when no “Kill the Serpent King” quest appeared no matter how much time passed, we all heaved sighs of relief.
“You realize you almost caused a catastrophe, right?”
“I do. I’m sorry.”
“J-just be more careful from now on, okay?”
I’m grateful they all forgave me. I decided to keep my mouth shut and spend time in reflection, and just as I finished my full ten seconds of self-examination, Gerth returned. The man casually brushed the soot from his clothes as if it were nothing and spoke with gentlemanly composure.
“It’s done. We can go now.”
“Wow. Look at your boyfriend’s steadfast nature—he’s got the cool charm of a veteran butler.”
“Gerth is rather cool.”
“R-rather isn’t the word, it’s m-much cooler.”
Heh, our Gerth certainly has that diligent charm. Hearing all this praise made me feel oddly proud. I shrugged my shoulders and savored the compliments about Gerth a bit more, then expressed my feelings to him honestly.
“Gerth. I like that diligent side of you.”
“Diligent? What’s that?”
“It’s a being who works well and receives rice from their mistress.”
“The mistress must have had a difficult time.”
Rice cultivation is quite laborious. Gerth, who took the compliment as being about a diligent servant but empathized with the mistress instead, said he’d walk ahead in case any mines remained. Then he seemed to be thinking about something, fell silent for a while, and spoke to me somewhat subtly.
“If it’s a being who receives rice from someone, wouldn’t Evan be more fitting than me?”
“That’s true.”
“So is Evan a diligent servant?”
“Huh? I have my share of diligent charm too, don’t I?”
“Evan has diligent charm.”
I see. We both have that diligent charm. When I examined it piece by piece, I was actually the diligent servant. Gerth was the mistress.
“Hey, do you two even understand what they’re saying?”
“I-I’m just listening.”
Reina Letem, who was about to criticize us, was stopped by Kanna. Kanna is someone who even intuitively understands her own mother’s behavior—surely she can’t fail to grasp our conversation. How amusing.
“Evan. What’s the point of these machines groaning as they follow their predetermined routes?”
“Atmosphere, perhaps?”
“Atmosphere?”
“Something like cultivating fear?”
“Do humans feel fear when they witness repetitive actions?”
“I’d like to say yes, but we’re demons now.”
“I overlooked that.”
Gerth laughed sheepishly, saying he kept forgetting things. How adorable.
“Speaking of which, is White One healthy?”
“Ever since the Machine King took care of him, he’s been in excellent health. He ate five kilograms of meat just yesterday.”
“I owe the Machine King a debt. It doesn’t sit well with me that we have to eliminate him.”
“You won’t accomplish great things if you can’t separate gratitude from necessity, Evan Laef.”
“Um, excuse me, but we’re here too. Could you include us in the conversation?”
Reina Letem complained that we kept creating our own little world, so we adjusted our pace to match those behind us. As we advanced, kicking away the occasional mechanical zombie that attacked us, I spotted the Department Head Professor descending from the sky, irritably brushing his hair back. His appearance carried a nobility reminiscent of cathedral frescoes, and for a moment, it seemed as though a halo shone around him. Did this man calculate every aspect of how magnificent he’d look while walking down from the heavens? Judging by how much he usually cares about his appearance, he’s definitely doing it all on purpose—but the conceptual mastery was impressive enough to inspire awe.
His appearance carried a nobility reminiscent of cathedral frescoes, and for a moment, it seemed as though a halo shone around him. Did this man calculate every aspect of how magnificent he’d look while walking down from the heavens? Judging by how much he usually cares about his appearance, he’s definitely doing it all on purpose—but the conceptual mastery was impressive enough to inspire awe.
“That’s so cool!”
“P-Professor, I-I saw a halo!”
“I thought an archangel was descending.”
He looked so magnificent that even Kanna stepped forward to praise him more enthusiastically than I did. In response to our fervent admiration, the Department Head Professor ran his hand through his hair once more and delivered a devastating low tone.
“I did put in some effort, actually.”
“Wow!”
“W-Wow!”
His descent in those dress shoes had the gait of a model, I tell you. As we whistled and cheered, the Department Head Professor lifted his chin to the heavens and savored the moment. His behavior when given a ride on an airplane—going around the world—is exactly like Reina Letem’s, so why don’t I find him annoying?
“More importantly, I don’t think the lady will change her mind. I did get a promise that the hotel would be made into a safe zone.”
“Isn’t that enough?”
“We were even prepared to sleep on the dungeon floor, so what more could we ask for?”
“I-I’ll check the remaining ingredients first to see if there’s any poison.”
If there’s a hotel where we can rest, then this place is just an amusement park with a strange atmosphere! We boldly opened the hotel doors and claimed the food and sleeping quarters first. Since being separated could create safety issues, should we use the penthouse as our base?
Everyone agreed with my suggestion, so we took the elevator up and got off at the rooftop. As we crossed the rooftop garden searching for the penthouse, Tuxedo Bunny suddenly appeared before us. We screamed “It’s Tuxedo Bunny!” and took a commemorative photo. Apparently, after hearing we were coming, Bunny Land went on hiatus, and Tuxedo Bunny and Cow-headed Friend, who were subordinates of the Serpent King, were driven out from Sky Island.

“I prepared skewered meat since we had some trimmed cuts available.”
At Gerth’s insistence that we fill our bellies before any fighting, we obediently waited for our meal. Judging by the half-prepared dishes still scattered throughout the Hotel Kitchen, it seemed they’d hastily evacuated all the guests during business hours.
“At least civilian casualties will be minimized.”
“That woman may be petty, but she’s not thoughtless.”
So I couldn’t defend her pettiness anymore. The Department Head Professor unfolded today’s newspaper that Gerth had brought and leisurely ate his skewers. I’d been wondering about this for a while—why was he so accustomed to being served? And why was Gerth naturally handling household chores?
“Hubert gets upset if the surroundings aren’t clean.”
I suppose the shock from when I vomited during my first visit to the Serpent King’s Tower left quite an impression. Gerth, who used to only cook well, had now become first-rate at cleaning too.
“This place is certainly high. People look like dust from here.”
“Y-yes. And you can see Sky Island up there too.”
This hotel, created with the Machine King’s mysterious technological prowess, extends to the 101st floor, and this penthouse is located approximately 500 meters above the Surface World. I found it somewhat frightening, but Reina pressed her face right against the window to gawk at the view below. Perhaps her nerves were just duller than mine.
“Sky Island is higher than this place, then…”
“H-higher means… a disadvantage?”
“No, I was just wondering if altitude sickness would be a problem…”
“Th-this altitude is… fine.”
When Kanna pointed out that they’d both endured our home, Reina and I nodded in agreement. Since no one else was going to mention it, I would—were you two really the same people with seventy days left to live?
“At first I was frustrated, but once I accepted it, my mind became at ease.”
“S-since I’m… dying with Evan anyway, I… I thought it might be okay.”
“I didn’t have such morbid thoughts.”
“I-I’m not… morbid!”
Both of them had been oddly spirited since earlier. I found myself worrying about what would happen to their mental state if they broke down when their lifespan was halved.
If I were given just one day or five seconds of lifespan, my tasks would be clear, which would actually be better. But when given plenty of time and told to accomplish it within that span, my heart crumbles with each passing day.
It was the same when they pressured me to enroll at the Academy, and when I was given sufficient time to prevent war. At first, I thought everything would somehow work out. Around the halfway point, I started counting down the remaining days with each passing moment. Even when I forced myself to eat to clear my head, I’d end up vomiting it all back up later. I often ran off to exercise mindlessly or dashed around the Academy trying not to think about anything.
“If it becomes difficult, tell me.”
Crying and complaining about a terminal condition isn’t something to be ashamed of. I advised them that whether it was me or anyone else, if they were struggling, they should open up and release their emotions. Both insisted they were fine and made a desperate effort.
If they wanted to appear strong for now, leaving them be was also an option.
“Evan. The same goes for you.”
Gerth, who’d been listening to my words, gently placed his hand on my crown and stroked along my hair with a soft, sweeping motion. His nails were firm and thick, creating an automatic scalp massage sensation. I understood his concern, but I was a veteran of terminal conditions—I was fine.
“I understand.”
But I gave him the answer he wanted to hear. Having experienced it just now, saying I was fine felt more considerate.
“Then, students. Let’s do a light first round.”
To clear the heavy atmosphere, the Department Head Professor tapped our shoulders and suggested we go exercise after our meal. And he said something incredibly cool.
“As long as I’m leading, there won’t be a single student dying within seventy days.”
“Professor! That’s amazing!”
“Damn, that’s so cool!”
“P-Professor, that’s awesome!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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